| Show The Strange Forced Exile of Foreign Student X Hes He's Forced From US U.S. Without Appeal or Due Process For Political Reasons It Happens All Aline The Time Advisors Cant Can't Cant Or Or Wont Won't Help GPS CPS It I It t happened last ast spring a young man from Bahrain who was a student at Texas AM University went on a three-day three excursion excursion excursion sion to Montreal On the third day he reported to the US U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service INS for the same routine examination examination examination exam exam- everyone must endure endure endure en en- dure to re-enter re the United States The student didn't make it Without warning with very little appeal and apparently apparently apparently ap ap- against his will wiH the student student vaguely vaguely accused of but never charged with carrying subversive literature literature litera litera- ture was ture was was flown to his home country The government government government govern govern- ment which sponsored the students student's scholarship wont won't answer questions The educators educators educators edu edu- who originally lured the student to this country deny any responsibility for protecting the rights of the foreigners they recruit And the US U.S. government wont won't even reveal the students student's names I It t happens all the time notes Dr Joe Heal foreign student advisor at the University University University Uni Uni- of Texas and one of the people who recruited the now-exiled now student Indeed Dave the INS' INS deputy regional commissioner in Burlington Vt estimates that 50 aliens with US U.S. visas are denied reentry reentry reentry re re- entry into this country each year And the problem of protecting protecting protecting pro pro- aliens' aliens rights becomes becomes becomes be be- comes even more pressing now because of American colleges' colleges increasingly in tense recruitment of foreign students Universities lure about about about a- a bout foreign students students students stu stu- dents to campus each year a number which a recent study predicted might increase to by 1990 Aliens cur cur- account for 25 percent percent percent per per- cent of the American student student student stu stu- dent body The reason for the growth is mostly economic as universities universities universities uni uni- seek to reverse declining declining declining de de- clining enrollment trends Foreign students pay full tuition usually live in university university university uni uni- housing and eat university university university un un- food Philip Doughty Dough Dough- ty of Syracuse University told College Press Service last spring All of which makes them a good buy Once here however they arent aren't necessarily afforded the constitutional rights to free speech and due process process process pro pro- cess that native students get If someone the someone the agency that sponsors the students student's scholarship the students student's home government or even the US U.S. government government government-de- de decides the student should be removed the student has few recourses Various governments and agencies and companies and ministries sponsor these scholarships Neal explains explains explains ex ex- plains and scholarships have a way of ending If they violate the restrictions on those scholarships they have to go home A spokeswoman for the National Association of Foreign Student Affairs in Washington says that most foreign student scholarships come with strings attached Students usually must maintain maintain maintain main main- tain a certain grade point must agree to return home after they complete their studies and must not change majors Neal recalls an Arab cultural cultural cultural cul cul- tural noting that if we need a civil engineer and we get back a major in folklore weve we've lost our in in- vestment Sponsors may also restrict sti sti dents dents' political activities in it lis country Neal says he heh heh heh h J 1 warned the nameless r student that his political activities were close to violating his scholarship restrictions The INS eventually made the decision The student according to was denied re-entry re into the US U.S. because he had praising Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini We believed it as a case where somebody was coming in to propagandize and possibly cause civil disturbances disturbances disturbances bances recalls The INS derives its authority authority authority auth auth- to make those decisions fr from m the McCarren Act a 1951 law passed during the McCarthy era The act empowers empowers empowers em em- powers Customs officials to tobar tobar tobar bar entry to those they judge about to engage in activities activities activities ties prejudicial to the public interest The INS told the student hed he'd have to wait to gain reentry reentry reentry re re- entry but Canada refused to extend the students student's visiting permit By the time the INS' INS regional office in Vermont told the Montreal INS office to reconsider the student had been forced to leave Canada Canada Canada Can Can- ada for home where the Bah Bah- government government des des described as a constitutional monarchy by Middle Eastern Eastern Eastern East East- ern Scholar George Linch- Linch of Berkeley's Institute Institute Institute tute of International Studies may may not look sympathetically sympathetically sympathetically at his support for Khomeini or his antigovernment govern anti ment activities Peter Levitov foreign stu stu- at the University University University sity of Nebraska finds it hard to believe that somebody somebody somebody some some- body in an airport or at a desk can decide what the national security and public interest of the United States is IS Worse yet foreigners have no right of appeal until they reach American soil But without the right of appeal appeal appeal ap ap- peal Levitov complains they cant can't even get into the US U.S. to state their claims Those who might be expected expected expected ted to help guard foreign students students' students students' students students' stu stu- dents' dents rights the rights the educators who recruited them to the US U.S. U.S.- U.S. seem generally unwilling unwilling unwilling ling or unable to press the appeals Dr Terry Greathouse International International International In In- Students director direct direct- or at Texas A AM I claimed that as a newcomer to his position he didn't know about this particular case He did however mention that Bahrain which exports about students to Texas Tex Tex- as schools is Very important important important tant to his university Risking insulting a major supplier of foreign students simply is not in foreign student student student stu stu- dent advisors' advisors job tion Neal in fact says the advisors act as the agents of the people who sponsor the scholarship As such the advisors often determine if students are violating the terms of their scholarships As for the student in question ques ques- tion one tion-one one of six exiled from Texas schools last spring the others' others grades Tades had fallen Neal fallen Neal said there was no question he was a leader of a group of students espousing anti- anti position against the government Once when the ambassador came to school the two were shouting at each oth oth- er A spokesman at the Bah Bah- embassy in Washington Washington Wash Wash- ington DC D.C. said We Ve wouldn't take away their scholarship for something like that On the other hand he added that Bahrain Bahrain- ians studying here dont have any business getting involved in political act act- Nevertheless the student is back in his tiny Persian Gulf homeland where Neal claims he is in good spir spir- its |
